The character Marc-Ambulles has been performing, strolling about and making people laugh for thirty years or so, and has been eliciting smiles and laughter at Tremblant for 20 years. People tend to call him a clown, but Marc-Ambulles identifies himself as a balloon sculptor, or as a public entertainer, for he has more than one trick in his bag to entertain without balloons.

“Sometimes just a little chat brings a smile,” he says. “When I walk from one business to another it does the employees good, as well.”

Good memories

In the streets of the pedestrian village, Marc-Ambulles has used several costumes: trapper, wooden soldier, stilts, a special surprise hat and more.

In summer, he entertains outside and gives personalized balloon sculptures to children young and old, throwing out a few jokes as he does so.

He reminisces about other memorable characters he liked working with. Armed with his pink fly swatter and his notebook of tickets, police officer Serge-Jean Leboeuf (played by Clément Légaré) imposed his own style of law, in which fun took precedence over serious matters.

While the field of entertainment was halted by a long, mandated pause, Marc- Ambulles was lucky enough to keep entertaining and to share his colourful works in summer 2020…while abiding by the numerous public health requirements, obviously.

This winter, however, when sculpting balloons outdoors would endanger the survival of his fingers, he’s using the hibernation time to build his own creativity.

In his workshop, Marc-Ambulles looks forward to the return of warm weather, as he still has “a number of crazy ideas to try out.”

The man behind the character

Before being a balloon sculptor, Marc-André Gendron was first a wood sculptor. Many of his works adorn the cultural heritage of the MRC des Laurentides, such as fifteen or so railway benches which serve as landmarks the length of the P’tit Train du Nord linear park.

Sculpting balloons is part of his creative journey…an art that he learned first from a friend, then from books, VHS video cassettes and the Internet. “The concept of a clown is disparaged. People have a preconceived notion. Put yourself in my shoes and hang on, though, cause it’s not as easy as all that,” he philosophizes.

The role of clown, in which a character brings us into his magic universe, he learned by himself. “Like in a parable from Frédéric Back, I let go of the rock and let the current take me,” Marc-André recounts. This self-taught entertainer offered his clown services at home and balloon delivery in the Laurentians, but it didn’t seem to be part of local culture.

So it was at Tremblant Ski Resort that he found his major contract, a place where he has been able to share his art with thousands of spectators. While waiting to again enjoy the playful energy of Marc-Ambulles in person, you can discover his practical book Sculpter les ballons (Sculpting balloons) published by Éditions Logiques in 1998.

And above all, with or without public entertainers, let’s keep smiling!

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